Mets 101 provides 24/7 obsessive sports coverage of the New York Mets as a part of Sports Media 101. For news,
op/ed, game reviews, team updates and even rumors you will find all of it on Mets 101. Have an opinion - join
the discussion and drop a comment. If it's about the Mets, it's on Mets 101.

A once daily email with the top 5 most important stories from around Sports
Media 101.

Email

News Archives

Mets 101 Seven in Seven Series: the Top Concerts in Shea Stadium/Citi Field #2 – Pope John Paul II at Shea Stadium

December 8th, 2012 at 6:36 PM By Joe Melendez

Just in time for the holiday season, Mets 101's Seven in Seven series returns as our gift to you. Each week, the Mets 101 staff will begin a countdown of topics related to the New York Mets (i.e. best third baseman, worst defeat, etc.). We will begin our countdowns with the number seven and work all the way to number one. This week's Seven in Seven list is a jammer, as we will break down the greatest concerts at both Shea Stadium and Citi Field of all time. We will continue our countdown today an event which wasn't a concert but an event which held a similar magnitude. The number 2 in our concert series, Pope John Paul II at Shea Stadium

Concert Stats: First papal visit ever to a Mets stadium, second Pope to visit New York and the borough of Queens, his appearance at Shea Stadium brought in a crowd over 60,000 people.

Analysis: While not a concert, Pope John Paul II's visit to Shea Stadium on December 3, 1979 as part of his seven-day tour in the United States was one of similar, if not greater magnitude. That solely speaking on a numbers aspect. The papal was able to bring in more than 60,000 thousand adorers to the stadium. His message that day to the enormous crowd was one of humanity, "A city needs a soul if it is to become true home for human beings." His second visit to Queens would be almost 16 years later, when he give a sermon at the Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park. Pope John Paul II was truly a man in which believed in reaching out to the multitudes. No matter their distance or background.

Check back tomorrow as we reveal the final edition of our "greatest concerts," held in Shea Stadium/Citi Field history with #1, as this Seven in Seven series concludes!